Guardian Legal Network + Scottish independence | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/law/series/guardian-legal-network+politics/scottish-independence
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We need to talk about the referendum | Aidan O'Neill QChttps://www.theguardian.com/law/2011/nov/08/uk-supreme-court-scottish-independence
Any vote on whether Scotland should remain in the Union would have to include the whole of the UK. What if the English voted No and the Scots Yes?<p>Referendums are very much in the air at the moment: Greece's prime minister first announced and then withdrew a proposal for a referendum on continued Greek membership of the eurozone; British Eurosceptics are pressing for a referendum on the UK's continued membership of the EU; and Scotland's first minister, Alex Salmond, has promised the SNP conference a referendum on Scotland's continued membership of the United Kingdom. The joy of referendums is that they bypass the messy and complex compromises created in and by the mechanisms and institutions of government within parliamentary democracies, and instead give "the people" the power to choose.</p><p>The underlying premise of referenda is, of course, that it is "the people" who are sovereign. And this is where the problem with the proposed Scottish referendum on independence comes in. The UK is a unitary state, not a federation. This remains the case even after devolution. Power devolved from the Westminster centre is power retained rather than power ceded, and sovereignty divided. If the UK, as a constitutional monarchy, allows for the notion of a "sovereign people", then it encompasses all the peoples of the United Kingdom. On this constitutional model, the "Scottish people" are no more sovereign than the "people of Basingstoke" or the "men of Kent" or the "women of Wales".</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/law/2011/nov/08/uk-supreme-court-scottish-independence">Continue reading...</a>LawUK supreme courtScottish independenceScottish politicsConstitutional reformScotlandAlex SalmondTue, 08 Nov 2011 17:46:27 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/law/2011/nov/08/uk-supreme-court-scottish-independencePhotograph: Murdo Macleod/Murdo MacLeodAlex Salmond announces a white paper paving the way for a referendum on Scottish independence. Photograph: Murdo MacleodPhotograph: Murdo Macleod/Murdo MacLeodAlex Salmond announces a white paper paving the way for a referendum on Scottish independence. Photograph: Murdo MacleodAidan O'Neill QC for the UK Supreme Court blog, part of the Guardian Legal Network2011-11-08T17:46:27Z